Al-Qurṭubī’s Ġāyat al-Ḥakīm and the ontology of astral talismanry

ENIn the early stages of Sufism’s development, magical and occult practices, following the Greek tradition, were closely linked to the natural world. As Sufi philosophy entered a period of intensified intellectual synthesis (circa the twelfth century), these practices became the exclusive domain of the Sufi elite, serving as a means of transcendence for the soul and acting as a spiritual catalyst in the relationship between the mystic and God (Fahd 1966; Hamès 2007; Lory 2004). Given the specificity and interconnectedness of these two phases, the question of cryptographic semantics, or theurgic instrumentarium, becomes particularly relevant in Sufism. Although talismanic practices have been known since Mesopotamia, ancient Egypt and beyond, the philosophical concept of the talisman has not yet received sufficient academic attention. This article will focus on al-Qurṭubī’s (Maslama al-Qurṭubī, 906–964) encyclopedia of astral / talismanic magic, Ġāyat al-Ḥakīm (“The Goal of the Sage”), better known worldwide by its Latin title, Picatrix. It is assumed that al-Qurṭubī, in his detailed practical and theoretical descriptions of astral / talismanic magic, is one of the first to articulate – implicitly but systematically – the philosophical conditions under which the sage himself functions as a talismanic mediator, rather than merely as a maker of talismans. In the 12th and 13th centuries, this concept was further developed by prominent Islamicate thinkers – Suhrawardī (Shihāb al-Dīn Yaḥyā ibn Ḥabash al-Suhrawardī, 1154–1191), al- Būnī (Aḥmad ibn ʿAlī al-Būnī, d. ca. 1225/1233), Ibn ʿArabī (Muḥyī al-Dīn Muḥammad ibn ʿAlī Ibn ʿArabī, 1165–1240) and others, so this is the first attempt to trace the roots of the philosophical concept of “human talisman” historically and conceptually. Keywords: occult sciences, astral magic, talismanry, philosophy, theurgy, al-Qurṭubī.